What is Social Selling? Thoughts about how to sell effectively on social media
Imagine that you are a trader from the early 90’s. Or maybe you were, just like me? You go to the office, browse the database of your region’s customers and start calling. You try to break through the secretary’s defense to talk with the decision-maker. The assistants trained in buoys often win by saying “yes, please send the offer by post”. When you pack a CD with a burned presentation, you already know that it will not work. You put on the pile of letters to send. Then you call another number…
Sounds like working in a call-center, right? And unfortunately, it was one of the most important parts of the salesman’s work. It is still today. First: contact the customer. Of course — the goal was to meet and present the offer live and sign a contract. But “getting leads” was done with this lame, time-consuming method.
Today it’s a little easier.
A revolution in the salesman’s work was undoubtedly the Internet. In 2006, I sent these unfortunate CDs by mail. But only two years later — in 2008, most correspondences with clients took place by e-mail. And one of the first tools that I used in the work of the seller was… Yellow Pages. Today in the standard merchant’s toolkit is a computer (laptop), mobile phone, company account mail, materials in the cloud, etc. Its role, however, has not changed — the main task is to acquire and maintain the customer. And this, my dear, is the result of building relationships.
Building relationships are the real, hidden task of every salesperson.
Social selling is based on building relationships (with current and potential clients) in social media. How to fulfill this task most effectively? Read on.
#1 How they find me — that they think about me.
Do you know what ZMOT is? Zero moment of truth? The concept created by Google mainly refers to e-commerce. Basically, it means that a purchase decision isn’t made in a store but before. People decide after they take a look into the web and read some information and opinions about the product. ZMOT was created to facilitate the sale of AdWords but it describes how we act nowadays.
When going to an interview, you look for information about the company. Before buying anything — e.g. a coffee machine to your restaurant — you first go to the web to check opinions. You also check people on social networks and Google before you meet with them. And what you find determines your assessment of this person. It also works in the opposite way. What can people find when they enter your first and last name in the web browser? Check it yourself (use the incognito mode). And think if what you find, creates your image as a pro. If not — it’s time to clean it up.
#2 Use a funnel & create a persona
Building a network of contacts is not sending invitations to thousands of random users. You don’t have to start a mass production of customers. What you need is a careful selection of potential business partners. That is why it is worth determining who your ideal customer is. Create a persona. Describe its demographic, behavioral and psychographic characteristics. Thanks to this, it will be easier for you to search those people in network and you will know what to tell them. And how.
#3 Get personal
Once you have a persona and find potential people who match it — then invite them to your network. Write a personalized message to each individual. Try to refer to something in common — the conference where you were together, the article that this person shared (or wrote), the successes that brought her business, promotion, etc. Before you talk to anyone, check what the person is doing network, watch it, wait for the right moment. Look for an excuse. Sometimes it may take a while — and sometimes you have to wait a few weeks for the opportunity to make contact. Is it worth it? You tell me. Would you like to build a relationship with a stranger who sends you spam or a person who know you and what you are doing and admire it?
#4 Be active
You do not have only to wait for an excuse. You can create it yourself. Publish curiosities related to your industry and product, create your own content (films, articles, documents, presentations), observe people from your business environment, enter into discussions with them. Comment on topics related to your business. Help, give advice. Do not expect anything in return. Thanks to the activity and substantive statements you will build the image of an expert and you will be remembered. When the right moment comes — some people will answer to you with a question, a proposal for cooperation or a request for the valuation of specific activities.
#5 Keep a good relationship
It means: help, give advice, comment, recommend to others and so on. This stage is no different from the work the trader did in the aforementioned 90’s. Write, call, ask how the business goes, how is going work in a new company. Be interested. Ask and answer questions. Do not expect to sign a contract after two conversations. As Will Smith said in the movie “The Hitch”, the main mistake men make when talking to a woman is NOT LISTENING. This can be properly translated into general communication between people no matter what their genders are. We all should listen and respond to what the other side is saying. Listen and respond.
Now you’re on the right track.
Remember! Each purchase decision taken by the customer is a loan of trust towards you. Therefore, never promise something that you can not bring. Do not cheat. Do not say that you will deal with it when you think in your head how you will hire a new team to be able to handle the task. Being transparent creates trust. Just like admitting your competences and the ability to refuse to take a project when it’s out of your reach.
Social selling is building relationships with people via social media. Not an effective and always-working marketing strategy but delicate actions on a living organism: people.
So.. Be a human! Not a seller.Nobody likes it when you sell something to him.
But everyone likes to buying.
Good luck!
And if you need any help with starting Social Selling in your company — please do not hesitate to contact me!
